http://www.nola.com/hornets/t-p/index.ssf?/base/sports-1/1084095458180320.xml Spare official makes sense for intense NBA playoffs Sunday, May 09, 2004 Jimmy Smith As a rule, the NBA does lots of things well. However, the way it assigns officials to its postseason games is not one of them. It's inconceivable that the league does not allocate an alternate referee for every playoff game, and in the league's first-round series this year it proved to be problematic. Last Sunday's Game 6 between the Hornets and Heat was the third game in which an official went down with an injury. Referee Joe Crawford's absence was both a blessing and a curse in that one. Crawford's whistle-happy demeanor had accounted for three personal foul calls in the game's first 51 seconds as he attempted to take charge of what had become a very physical series between two intense teams. When he went out with 1:45 to go in the first quarter with a torn plantar fascia in his right foot, it left his partners, Sean Corbin and Blane Reichelt, alone. And they were overmatched. Even though another NBA official -- New Orleans native Derrick Collins, who lives in Slidell -- was in New Orleans Arena, he could not have come out of the stands to work the game because he wasn't on the league's playoff roster. But what would have happened had either Corbin or Reichelt been injured? This week, the NBA officials' union asked the league to assign alternates to each game for the rest of the playoffs, according to a report from Bloomberg News, which obtained a copy of the ref's proposal. That just makes sense. But the league is balking. "Quality officiating can only be ensured if three officials are on the court at all times," the proposal said. "The intensity of the playoffs necessitates that the NBA take all precautionary actions to ensure quality officiating." Three other professional sports leagues -- the NFL, NHL and Major League Baseball -- have alternate officials assigned to every playoff game. NBA senior vice president of basketball operations Stu Jackson told Bloomberg a change was not imminent. "Referees are trained to adjust accordingly in the rare case of an official going down," Jackson said. Based on what we saw last Sunday in New Orleans Arena, that's a pipedream. ONE SECURE: Phoenix coach Mike D'Antoni, who replaced Frank Johnson with the Suns during the season, is apparently in line to receive a contract extension. "I don't think anything is definite," D'Antoni told The East Valley (Ariz.) Tribune. "But we're definitely talking." NO THANKS: In Philly, O'Brien hired former Hornets head coach Dick Harter, but former Celtics assistant John Carroll, who replaced O'Brien when he walked away from the job this year, declined an invitation to become a Sixers assistant. "I talked to John and he wants to pursue opportunities as a head coach," O'Brien told The Boston Globe. "We may coach together at another time. But John and I basically duplicate each other." Carroll foiled Danny Ainge's plan to get the Celtics into the draft lottery by qualifying Boston in the eighth playoff spot in the Eastern Conference this season. SURPRISE! New York Knicks fans got a rude letter in the mail this week: ticket prices are going up in Madison Square Garden. The New York Post reported that season-ticket holders learned the news less than two weeks after the New Jersey Nets eliminated the Knicks in a first-round sweep. The Knicks claim the increase to be 11 percent, but the Post said some tickets went up an average of 20 percent. Team officials said that much of the price hike will be absorbed by ticket holders who own the more expensive seats. ON THE WAY: The Raptors apparently are closing in on hiring a new general manager. The Toronto Star reports that the team should select a replacement to the fired Glen Grunwald in the next week. Second interviews are scheduled with Denver Nuggets assistant general manager Jeff Weltman and Timberwolves assistant general manager Rob Babcock. . . . . . . . Jimmy Smith can be reached at [email protected] or (504) 826-3814. --

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